Smart Souveniers

I was asked by kyotokyoto to do a write-up on a shop called J-Spirit in the Fumitsubaki Building behind the Starbucks on Sanjo x Karasuma.

J-Spirit is part gallery, part product shop. At the moment, the gallery is showing an artist/illustrator named Ichiro Tsuruta, who makes paintings, drawings, and prints of 80’s-looking Japanese ladies. The work extends out into the hallways upstairs and inside the Neutron café on the second floor. The products on display at the moment are some very nifty reversible lap-top cases in retro print material, jewelry, and other small goods.







I was was also immediately drawn to the pottery made by this couple.




OMG they are so cute. They like to drink sake, so a lot of their pieces are for sake-drinking (ochoko and tokkuri ). But look at these adorable geta chopstick rests! They live and work in a machi-ya in North Kyoto, a pottery wheel right next to their dining area. The woman let me choose an ochoko to drink the sake of my choice out of- gochisosama!








If you're visiting, I highly recommend getting tasteful gifts for your friends and family here rather than finding kitch souveniers at shops along Shinkyogoku or the tourist traps.

New, Fresh, Simple, Clean

Dining on soup, sandwiches, bread, and salad almost daily in Europe makes a Japanese person want some Japanese food. I think it's wired into my DNA because no doubt in my mind, Japanese food is the most superior food on the planet. Also, I had been sick, and this flu virus was not letting me go so easily. My body only yearned for plain, basic nourishment.

So for lunch we went to Tohru Soba, which I've mentioned only in passing in a previous entry. "We have new crop soba" announced a memo on the door. What does that mean, exactly? Well, according to the owner/soba-maker, it's soba noodles made from a freshly picked buckwheat crop- lighter in flavor, but very fragrant. Some people like it, and some people would say that the older soba gets, the better. Like Beaujolais nouveau? I said, not knowing what I was talking about. Yeah, sorta like that.

But anyway, I like this hidden lunch spot because not only is the food healthy and delicious, the interior is also nice; a corridor with stepping stones and tiny pebbles leading to a clean long wooden counter. The dishes and bowls each have their own personality but all are very simple. Food, interior, tableware- they all go together in their understated but hearty vibe.

Tohru soba serves hand-made soba and is only open for lunch from 11:30 ~ 3pm, after which it turns into a sake bar run by a different man in the evenings. It's on Nijo x Higashinotoin. Closed Wednesdays and 1st Thursdays of the month. Sometimes, they run out, so call ahead if you're going late.

Kora Kapda @ Cafe Hello

Lovely Cafe Hello's gallery, Halo Galo is hosting Kora Kapda, Tokyo-based design team speicializing in stoles and clothing made from Indian Kadi cotton.

At this point, Kora Kapda only has an online shop, so this is a great chance to see these exquisite pieces in person. Feel how soft and smooth they are on the skin, take in the colors, and wrap them around your shoulders and have a look in the mirror. Just draping them on makes anyone look ten times more stylish. It's a no-brainer! To top it all off, prices are quite reasonable considering the quality.

Kadi is a small city in India, the epicenter of cotton ginning and production. The cotton used for these stoles is hand spun and woven in a tradition passed down from long ago, often used for makinig Saris. Absorbant and quick-drying, the fabric keeps one cool in summer and warm in winter. The hand-spun cotton thread is so fine, a machine is unable to produce the same delicate results.

This mini shop runs until November 27th. Cafe Bibliotic Hello is on Nijo between Tominokoji and Yanaginobamba

Coffee House Jittoku/Niplets

Back from my whirlwind European tour, recovering from illness and jetlag.
Ring ring, i got a call to go out on a Wednesday night. "C'mon...It's my favorite band, it's psychadelic rock-ish," my friend said. Shoooot. Aw, OK.

"A bit north on Oomiya/Marutamachi" I told the cab driver. I arrived at a funny building- an old sake brewery. Coffee House Jittoku is supposedly the oldest live venue in all of Japan??? You can have a seat against the wall on tatami, or sit on barrels at big round wooden tables. Large spherical paper lanterns dimly illuminate the room. There were very few people there.

Food, drinks, and alcohol on the menu. My liver, or is it my kidneys? or my spleen? felt week from a full week of meds. I ordered a tomato juice. Niplets was the band he was talking about. What a groupie. He apparently goes to all their shows. But actually, I don't blame him. They are really good- Experieced musicianship, and definitely no pretention.

Their next show is in Osaka on December 21st at Musica Japonica.
The event is titled Hiroshi Matsuri, the leader of the Niplets being a Hiroshi. All the bands he's in will play. All people named Hiroshi get in free.

Niplets needs more fans and groupies. Come out and support.

Vacation Time

Remember my 500 yen jar? Well, I filled it up.
I brought the loot to the bank and it was just over 100,000 yen.
Well, that's half a plane ticket to Europe. So...

Chocolate, cobblestones, strong beer, in ghost-town Brussels;
Beautiful sunlight, trolleys, leaves changing color in Gent;
Fog, pure white walls, a fabulous dinner in Bruge:
Shopping!, antiques, the White Lily Hotel, elephants in Antwerp
Top Shop!, pizza, Brick Lane in London;
Rain, canals, sexy ladies, sickness, and reuniting with my BFF in Amsterdam

Everyone needs a vacation!!